1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to agricultural equipment, and, more particularly, to a pneumatic agricultural product delivery system on an application implement, such as a planter or fertilizer application equipment, for applying particulate material such as seed, fertilizer, herbicide or insecticide in a field, either as a surface application or deposited in the soil.
2. Description of the Related Art
Pneumatic agricultural product delivery systems are known to utilize a flow of air to assist in the delivery and movement of particulate material or product such as fertilizer, seed, insecticide or herbicide from a product supply chamber through an interior passage provided by a series of elongate tubes which extend from the product supply chamber to a product applicator that places the product on or in growing medium, such as soil. Such pneumatic agricultural product delivery systems are commonly employed in planters, air drills, fertilizer and pesticide applicators and a variety of other agricultural implements.
Agricultural implements that employ a pneumatic agricultural product delivery system are known to have a particulate material supply source such as one or more tanks that are loaded with the particulate material or materials to be applied. The tanks have or are associated with a metering device, which typically consists of a rotating element, which meters the particulate materials from the tanks into a set of distribution channels, such as conduits, hoses, etc., for application to the farm field. In most systems, a pneumatic source such as a fan or blower provides air to convey and distribute material through the distribution channels. Once the metering of particulates is done and the mix of air and particulates is in the distribution channels, the solid concentration should remain nearly constant and in dilute phase.
Systems as described have provided certain advantages and have worked acceptably in some aspects, but are not without disadvantages, inefficiencies or inconveniences. For example, the long distribution lines following the metering device can plug and interrupt the flow of material to the units that apply the material to the field. Further, it is desirable to use a material supply source, such as a tank, with different applicator equipment by, for example, coupling the tanks with a planter for planting seed, and later coupling the same tank equipment with an applicator for applying needed pesticides and/or fertilizer. This has been difficult due to the necessary metering systems for applying the different materials. With the metering device provided on the tank, it is necessary to adjust the metering device whenever the tank is used for supplying a different material. This can be time consuming and inconvenient if the metering device is underneath the tank. Moreover, tank pressurization can be complex using metering devices due to the differences in pressure between the tank and meters.
What is needed in the art is an agricultural product conveying system which improves efficiency and convenience.